Pages tagged free speech

I awakened early Wednesday to listen to a voicemail message from Omar Barghouti, a leading member of the Palestinian movement to Boycott, Divest, and Sanction (BDS) Israel. In the message, Omar told me that he was at Ben Gurion Airport and despite holding a valid US visa and a boarding pass for his flight to Washington, D.C., the airline would not let him board the plane. He was informed that American immigration officials had notified the airline that he was being barred from entry into the US.

This week, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN) attempted to break the dam on a discussion that has been held back for too long: the sanctity of Israel in our U.S. Congress, and the role of powerful pro-Israel organizations like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) in maintaining a taboo around criticisms of Israel. While the dishonest backlash to Omar's tweets has largely succeeded in shifting the conversation away from U.S.-Israel policy and into a debate about anti-Semitism, it is critical to take a moment to focus on the actual positions Omar was communicating.

Reports have surfaced that lawmakers plan to hide two controversial bills in large omnibus packages for passage before the next Congress is sworn in.Some pro-Israel groups have been trying to push legislation like the Israel Anti-Boycott Act and the so-called Anti-Semitism Awareness Act in Congress for years, but they failed each time because these bills violate our First Amendment by seeking to shield Israel from criticism at the expense of our free speech rights. Now, in a desperate act, some are trying to hide these acts in large, end-of-year spending bills.This is unacceptable. Tell Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate...